Groundwork is free to access for all readers across the US, UK, and Australia. We believe evidence-based research and mathematical calculators should never be locked behind paywalls. This page explains our business model, our FTC/ASA compliance, and our strict editorial firewall. Last updated September 2026.
No merchant or brand can pay to be ranked first, reviewed favorably, or included in our research guides.
Our 20 interactive calculators and 10 practice exam simulators run pure deterministic math and uncompromised statutory keys. Commercial partnerships never alter a formula, passing score, or rationale.
Our 5 research desks do not know commercial payout rates when evaluating products, benchmarks, or clinical data.
In compliance with the United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC 16 CFR § 255), the UK Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), we maintain complete transparency regarding our revenue mechanisms:
Some of the links on Groundwork are affiliate links (routed cleanly through our secure server redirection hub at /go/[slug]). When you click an affiliate link to a vetted financial provider, solar installer, or software tool and open an account or make a purchase, we may receive a referral commission from the partner network (e.g. Impact.com, CJ, AvantLink) at no additional cost to you.
In many cases, our partner agreements negotiate lower fees, promotional APRs, or extended trials for Groundwork readers that are not available through direct sign-up.
We display privacy-respecting programmatic banner advertisements (via Google AdSense and Certified Ad Networks). We strictly enforce the Coalition for Better Ads Standards:
For automated crawler compliance, AI research auditing, and institutional partners, our complete commercial policy, active merchant inventory, and prohibited category manifesto is published as an open machine-readable JSON endpoint.
For inquiries regarding partnership audits, FTC compliance, or institutional licensing, reach out directly to our compliance desk: